Playing Not To Lose

There is a difference in playing to win and playing not to lose. It sounds the same. On the peripheral, it might seem insignificant to those who don't understand the psychological differences. Playing to win means you are in the moment, secure in the belief of the outcome, heading toward the goal of having more points than the opponent at the end of the game. You are calm, searching for answers as the game progresses, believing in your abilities and those of your teammates. It feels comfortable and easy even if the lead is changing possession by possession.

Playing not to lose, on the other hand, is stressful, mind-taxing, and muscle-tensing. Playing not to lose means you are worried from the beginning about the outcome. Your focus is not on the moment; it is on the what-ifs of losing. When you are in this place of torment, you are not free to play as yourself because your belief system is in doubt. Your emotions are in the zone of fear and fear creates the physical symptoms of increased heart rate, muscle tension, rapid breathing, tunnel vision, and energy consumption.

When coaches say at the end of the game that their team choked, they are referring to this concept of playing not to lose. It is a real not imagined phenomena. It is the mind controlling the outcome of a contest before the contest even begins.

Not to take anything away from West Virginia Wesleyan, but we lost the game before we entered the court on Saturday. After gaining the number one slot in the conference and the number three slot in the region, our minds begin to worry and be consumed with the idea of not remaining in those positions. The mind is a tricky organ, and it is difficult to change the course of a mind once it begins its route on a thought. It is like hearing a song in the morning and then singing it all day long. It just gets in your mind and repeats and repeats and repeats.

Going toward a goal is different than going away from one. For example, if I wanted to travel to Cleveland, I would get on Interstate 77 and go north. It would take me approximately 3 hours and 45 minutes to arrive in Cleveland. It would be an easy drive. I knew where I wanted to go and how to get there. There were no questions about which route was going to get me to where I wanted to go.

Suppose my goal was to go away from Charleston. I had no real destination in mind other than going away from Charleston. I might end up in Cleveland but it could take me hours because I had no real destination in mind; therefore, I might take back roads, detours, or go to five different cities before arriving. I would be tired of driving, my neck muscles would be tense, my eyes would be fatigue, and I would be hungry.

There is a real difference in heading toward something rather than going away from it or trying to avoid it. How do we return to going toward a win rather than trying so hard not to lose? We become aware of what we are doing. We change our words we speak to ourselves. We learn the lesson that we have to think in terms of a positive goal. We believe we have done it before so we can do it again. We understand that we control our minds and our minds do not control us. And we try. We get back on the court and play like we are capable.